


Runner Up

by Texan_Red_Rose



Category: RWBY
Genre: Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, F/F, F/M, Multi, One Big Happy Family, Polyamory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-18
Updated: 2018-05-18
Packaged: 2019-05-08 18:02:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,902
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14699439
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Texan_Red_Rose/pseuds/Texan_Red_Rose
Summary: For the annual Rose-Branwen-Xiao Long picnic, Yang's suggested a little competition for team RWBY: bring a date! Ruby's not concerned about that, though. It's introducing her girlfriends to her mothers than has her concerned.





	Runner Up

**Author's Note:**

> Because I can. That's it.

It’s not that they’ve always been competitive. It’s just, within Team RWBY, they found unique ways of motivating each other. 

When Yang suggested they make a bet to see who could and couldn’t get a date to the Rose-Branwen-Xiao Long annual picnic, Ruby thought it meant just motivating each other to go out and try dating, seeing as they were gearing up for graduation and all. Figuring out how to balance a social life with everything else- that was just a skill they’d have to learn, and what better way to drive the point home than with a little healthy competition and bragging rights?

However, as Ruby stepped onto the path leading to the hill that overlooked her childhood home, she had a feeling that this would either be the last competition Team RWBY held or the first in a never-ending escalating war that would threaten to destroy all of Remnant in one way or another.

“Calm down.” Fingertips lightly brushed the back of one hand, enticing her to interlace their fingers. “Everything will be fine.”

“That’s easy for you to say, Blake!” She leaned into her girlfriend’s side. “It’s not  _your_  family!”

Her other girlfriend pressed against her other side. “Well, Blake’s family is quite different in a number of ways.”

“Oh, I could say the same for yours,” the Faunus replied with a little smirk. 

“And they’re  _both_  miles away from  _my_  family.” She whined. “Do you two have  _any_  idea how my moms are going to react to this?”

“Of course.” Blake nodded solemnly. “Summer will be overjoyed and Raven will threaten to kill us.”

“That does seem to be the most likely.” Pyrrha offered a soft smile, gently readjusting her red cape. “But we knew that when we started dating. Between your stories and Yang’s, it’s hard not to see how things will play out.”

Another groan left her lips as she reached up, pulling her hood over her head to try and hide her blush. Truthfully, she hadn’t  _intended_ to date both of them. She’d just… casually mentioned to Blake one day in the library that she thought Pyrrha was pretty, and kind, and sweet, and the Faunus agreed, even confessed to having a bit of a crush on the so-called Invincible Girl. It wasn’t until her heart clenched painfully at hearing the whispered words that it occurred to her that she maybe had a crush of her own, but she encouraged her teammate to pursue it anyway. She shouldn’t stand in the way of her friend finding happiness, right?

But then Blake admitted that she had a crush on someone  _else_  as well, and it would make her feel guilty to pursue one but not the other, and she didn’t really think either would pan out anyway. That led into a brief little debate about whether or not admitting to a crush would be a good idea and Ruby blurted out that she, too, had a crush on Pyrrha. Then, she saw the little bit of hurt in amber eyes, and followed it up with admitting that she had a crush on  _Blake_ as well, and she wanted them both to be happy.

That’s about the time that Pyrrha herself leaned over from the adjacent table and asked both of them on a date.

A week later, Yang proposed the little contest for their family picnic, and, well, she couldn’t  _not_  bring both of them to Patch. Blake already had an invite, on account of being part of the team, but getting Pyrrha out there without raising any brows…

“Oh,  _crap_ , Yang’s going to kill me.” Ruby groaned again.

“I’m sure she’ll take the news better than Raven.” They started up the hill, Blake squeezing her hand reassuringly. “I mean, she’s our friend and my partner. She’s not going to object-”

“But she  _might_  tease you a little bit for not telling her sooner.” Pyrrha pointed out, chuckling softly and slipping her hand into Ruby’s unoccupied one. “If she starts anything, I’ll challenge her to an arm wrestling contest.”

“Our knight in gold armor.” 

Over her head, Blake and Pyrrha exchanged a soft kiss, and somehow seeing her girlfriends kiss made things a little better, because somewhere deep down, she knew both of them had good points. She really didn’t have anything to  _worry_  about; she’d just never brought anyone home before.

But, really, what did she have to worry about?

“Ruby! Blake!” She blinked, looking up to the top of the hill, where the light breeze had caught her mother’s white cloak while she smiled down at them. “And I believe that’s Pyrrha with you, isn’t it? Yang mentioned you’d be bringing… guests.”

Okay, that meant her sister had either told Taiyang the truth and he’d carefully worded it when he informed their other parents or had told Raven something vague and she’d repeated her verbatim. By the little smirk on the woman’s lips, though, she didn’t think it mattered; her mom had seen straight through it.

“Hi, Mom! I, uh, wanted to introduce you! To my girlfriends!”

“Like momma, like daughter, huh?” She opened her arms and it didn’t matter that she was just a few months shy of becoming a full fledged Huntress, Ruby immediately released her girlfriends’ hands and charged forwards, jumping into her mom’s outstretched arms. “Looks like you’re growing up, my little Rutabaga. I’m proud of you.”

“Thanks, Mom.” She drew back a little bit, a bit of nervousness creeping into her smile. “Do you think Momma’s going to… well…”

“Oh, she went and dug out her mask the moment it clicked.”

Her shoulders fell. “She’s not going to make a scene, is she?”

“Now now, your mother’s dramatic, but I don’t think she’d intentionally ruin the picnic.” Silver eyes narrowed briefly. “At least, she better not, or she’ll have  _me_  to answer to.”

“And me!” Tai called out, carrying a tub of potato salad up the hill. “Good to see you, Ruby. And Blake, Pyrrha- Yang mentioned there’d be more than just us this time around! Glad both of you could make it!”

Summer, however, became instantly suspicious. “Tai, where’s our wayward wife?” 

“Oh, I thought she was up here with you.”

“No, I haven’t seen her this morning.”

Ruby opened her mouth, because her Momma rather liked hanging out in the attic ever since last year, when Yang and Ruby combined their talents to turn it into a hybrid study and aviary. However, before the suggestion could leave her lips, the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end and she had to bite back something that would get her a sharp look from her mom as a black portal tinged with red appeared. Slowly, a bone white mask with red lines emerged, burning red eyes peering out through the slits.

“So… you two are dating my daughters, is that it?” Raven growled out in that patented ‘I’m-a-threat-and-you-should-fear-me’ voice that had previously only come out during scary movies and Halloween.

Blake and Pyrrha, however, remained unfazed, one well adjusted to the shenanigans that regularly occurred within the Rose-Branwen-Xiao Long household and the other simply accustomed to more intimidating displays back home in Mistral.

And, sure enough, it was Pyrrha who first rose to the challenge. “Actually, we’re only dating one daughter.”

That brought Raven to a halt, halfway through her portal, the red of her blade just beginning to peak out. Not that she would  _actually_  draw the weapon, of course; it was probably just for show anyway. “Wait, which daughter?”

Blake’s ears twitched though she held her ground. “Ruby.”

“Oh.” Hopping out the rest of the way, she reached up and removed her mask, shaking he head and running a hand through her bangs. “Nevermind then. She’s not the one I have to worry about.”

“Momma! What does that mean?” Ruby crossed her arms over her chest and tapped her foot. “Yang has good taste, you know.”

“I’m not saying she doesn’t.” Her lips curled into a little smirk. “But, between the two of you, she’s  _far_  more likely to bring a date for the express purpose of getting one over on someone, and I’m not getting pranked by my own kid.” The young team leader raised a brow until the woman relented. “Again.”

“She  _did_  get you pretty good last Christmas,” Tai said, checking over the old wooden table that could probably be replaced- they’d spent more time and effort trying to replace the benches and tabletop than making a new one would’ve taken at this point- and nodding to himself. “I thought it was hilarious.”

“Of course you would.” Clicking her tongue, Raven favored Blake and Pyrrha with a smile. “It’s good to see both of you again and I’m happy to hear you’re both dating Ruby. Be good to her, alright?”

Ruby put her hands on her hips. “Wait, so you were  _really_  doing the whole ‘I’m the terror of your nightmares’ thing just to scare off whichever inappropriate date you  _think_  Yang might be bringing?”

“I can’t believe you still remember that,” her Momma said, coming over and wrapping her up in a hug, careful not to catch the edges of her mask on her cape. “If I’d known it would’ve scared you that bad, I wouldn’t have done it.”

“Raven, she was six, everything terrifies a six-year-old.” Summer sighed. “Tai, talk to her; I’m sure Yang’s not going to prank her today.”

“I know my daughter; she’s plotting  _something_.”

“Honey, she’s probably not.”

“Don’t take her side!”

As her parents began fussing with each other, Ruby turned her attention back to her girlfriends. “So! That was a thing.”

“Well, we didn’t get a death threat!”

“I’m genuinely surprised that all we got was a stern warning.” Blake then smiled, leaning down to peck her cheek. “We told you it would be fine.” Pyrrha curled her arm around Ruby’s shoulders, pulling her closer while the Faunus’ ears flicked back. “Oh, Weiss is here.”

“Is someone with her?” Although she couldn’t actually let it be  _too_  known, she’d worried a bit about her partner- specifically, the pinch that came to her brow when she accepted Yang’s suggestion for the contest. Sure, she had her suspicions that the former heiress had a crush of her own that she hadn’t yet addressed, but Weiss always got…  _touchy_  about discussing personal issues. So, she’d tried obliquely encouraging her, because, really, even if she could be a little… difficult from time-to-time, or dramatic, or both, Weiss had come a long way since their initiation! Who  _wouldn’t_  want to date her? “Oh, please tell me someone’s with her.”

“Someone is.” A slick grin crossed her face. “Someone we know, too.”

With a raised brow, she popped up onto her toes, trying to peer over the lip of the hill. When she finally caught sight of her partner and her guest coming up the path, she outright laughed. “Weiss! Coco!”

“Oh, calm down you dolt.” Of course she rolled her eyes, but the smile tugging at her lips and very,  _very_  light blush on her cheeks speaking more than her words. “I’m glad you remember our names, though.”

“Hello again.” Pyrrha waved. “How’s the Huntress life treating you, Coco?”

“Oh, it’s a blast.” Tapping her sunglasses to lower them enough for chocolate eyes to look at them, she walked over and pulled each of them into a hug. “I spent last week in a Vacuo desert chasing down an alpha duneworm- the thing was almost half a mile long. Managed to stop by a lovely village and pick up some nice scarves, though, for our big trip to Atlas.”

“Atlas?” Blake’s ears perked up as she tilted her head. “Weiss, are you really-”

“It’s not for my father, but I  _would_  like to see Klein and my mother again.” She shrugged, spreading her hands. “Winter swears up and down she talked some sense into the woman. I’d like to see it for myself.”

“And introducing your kickass girlfriend to them.” Coco threw her a look. “That  _is_  on the list.”

“Yes, yes, of course.” Blue eyes darted between Ruby, Blake, and Pyrrha. “So… question. Pyrrha, who are you here with?”

“My girlfriends,” the redhead replied with a wide smile, putting a hand on each of their shoulders.

Weiss’ shoulders fell. “ _Girlfriends?”_

“Uh… surprise?” Ruby offered a weak little smile. “It’s… pretty recent.”

Before the former heiress could start in on a lecture about keeping secrets, Coco wrapped her arms around Weiss’ waist and chuckled. “Oh no, my pretty pearl, you’re not about to get onto them for not telling when we’ve been dating for almost six months and  _you_  didn’t mention it.”

“I- I was- IT’S NOT THE SAME!” Weiss sputtered, either from genuine outrage or just being unaccustomed to open affection still. Through the years, she’d gotten better… but she still had some distance to go.

“It really is, though,” Blake said with a fond shake of her head. “You’re just being contrarian again.”

“Am not.”

“Hey, hey now, no fighting at the family picnic!” Tai warned, though there was warmth in his voice. “And when’s Yang getting here? Not like her to be fashionably late.”

“I’ll call her.” Ruby offered, pulling out her scroll. 

A few moments later, her sister picked up, though the screen initially only showed the blue sky overhead while laughter rang out, Yang’s happy visage eventually filling the screen. “Hey, Rubes! Everyone there?”

Blake and Pyrrha pressed close to her while Weiss and Coco peered from the other side. “Yeah, where are you?”

“I had to pick up my date from the docks! Literally!” Her shoulders shrugged, jostling the person in her arms. “So, how’s our little bet going?”

“Well, Ruby brought two girlfriends, and I happen to be one of them, so I think we win,” the Faunus said with a smirk.

“What about Weiss?”

Suddenly, Ruby found her scroll being pulled from her hand as the former heiress glared at the screen. “ _I_  brought my girlfriend of six months, Yang. Did you honestly think I wouldn’t be able to get a date?”

“Nah, of course not! But, ya know, we gotta have a second place, and  _we_  have been together seven months! But, that’s kinda a silly way to judge it, so how about something else?” 

“What do you propose?”

Silver eyes widened as she got that feeling again, the hairs standing up again, and she had to glance over to ensure Raven wasn’t about to pull something. Her Mom and Momma were a bit busy fussing over the chocolate chips cookies, though- one trying to sneak a few while the other played defense so there would be some for everyone- which meant it would be  _Yang_  pulling something this time around.

“Well, I’ve been carrying my sweetheart since the docks. Figure that’s enough of a headstart for you.” Lilac eyes danced with mischief. “So, you pick up your date, and the first one to drop their girlfriend is in last place.”

Ruby, Blake, and Pyrrha exchanged looks that ranged from curious to cautiously optimistic.

“You’re on, Xiao Long.” Returning Ruby her scroll, Weiss motioned for Coco to come over, the shorter of the two still managing to slip an arm beneath her girlfriend’s knees while the other supported her shoulders- a classic bridal carry. “There. Now, get here in some semblance of short order and accept your defeat with dignity.”

“Oh, I’m already here! Turn around!”

As one, they all looked back towards the path leading up to the hill, and Ruby could  _see_  it happening a moment before everything did.

Because her sister hadn’t shown up with just any date cradled in her arms, no.

She happened to be carrying  _Winter Schnee_ , Weiss’ big sister, who had traded her military uniform for board shorts and a tank top.

In pure shock, Weiss’ body went slack, which meant she immediately  _dropped_  her girlfriend to the ground with an undignified  _oomph._

“Weiss, how dare you,” Winter said, collapsing the scroll and tucking it into Yang’s jacket without looking. “You haven’t even introduced me to your girlfriend yet, and you’ve already dropped her, really, I raised you better than that.”

“Weiss, what the fuck.” Coco pushed herself up to her elbows. “Could you be a little  _less_  of a total mess?”

Now, the former heiress was caught between apologizing to her girlfriend, explaining to her sister, and yelling at Yang for engineering it. Amidst it all, Raven’s loud laughter could be heard, breathless explanations of how Yang’s pranks were good as long as they weren’t directed at  _her_  earning chiding remarks from both Summer and Tai while the former tried to keep his own amusement in check.

Meanwhile, Ruby slipped her hands into those of her girlfriends, smiling up at them, and unsure why she was ever worried in the first place. For all the craziness the past few years brought with them, they’d forged the sort of family and support system that could weather any storm, as evidenced when Winter was set back on her feet and immediately went over to warmly introduce herself to Coco while Weiss lightly smacked Yang’s shoulder in recompense.

“Hey,” she said, looking up into amber and emerald eyes. “I love both of you.”

“Love you too,” her girlfriends replied, pressing kisses to her cheeks.

Yeah… she really had nothing to worry about at all.


End file.
